The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

Loading ...

Loading ...

This story appears in the {{article.article.magazine.pretty_date}} issue of {{article.article.magazine.pubName}}. Subscribe

Thanks to the Internet, the wealth that is human knowledge has been democratized, archived, and placed at our fingertips. The answer to almost any question is just a Google search away. Sites like Wikipedia have capitalized on the intelligence of the masses, crowd-sourcing millions of articles from experts across the globe. It was only a matter of time before the Internet reached its true potential: helping women figure out what is going through men's minds when they send a text message.

"HeTexted," which launched in October is a place where women of all ages can submit cryptic text messages they've received from men for help with interpretation or to simply get "He's into you" or "He's not into you" votes. I share with you, because like Leslie Horn of Gizmodo, I can't stop reading these entertaining and sometimes horrifying texts. I'm not the only one. Within a month of its viral launch, the founders landed a book deal (with the book due out in January 2014).

The most forced smiley face of all time

I don't think she does in fact love it.

I can't believe it either.

When the site first launched, to much media attention, Rebecca Greenfield of the Atlantic Wire focused on the site's dark side: "Underneath the hilarious back-and-forth texts and glimpses into other people's dating mishaps and misunderstandings, it's actually all about making fun of how 'clueless' women are when it comes to men... So it basically exploits our moments of relationship indecision, turning them into something to laugh at rather than actually helping—even though helping is what the site claims it's about."

I refuse not to laugh at cluelessness. That's not a sacrifice I'm willing to make. And I think the Internet is doing a favor to all the friends of these women who would otherwise have to consult with them endlessly over inane digital back-and-forths.

"We really do want to help people," says Carrie Henderson-McDermott, 26, one of the site's co-founders. "Woman twice divorced who are returning to the dating field who never had to do texting before need this help."

And so HeTexted joins the many spaces on the Internet that some of us go to for dating advice and the rest of us go to for relationship schadenfreude. We are endlessly fascinated by peeks into other people's private lives, especially around the confusion and excitement of courting. The site, which attracts from 25,000 to 40,000 visitors per day, is careful though about personally identifiable information slipping into the submissions. Full names and numbers have to be deleted.

"We don't want any personal information leaked. We don't want people using the site to get back at people," says Henderson-McDermott. "I monitor the site. I live on it."

And Greenfield might like to know that moving forward, submissions won't be limited to "clueless women." The site founders are launching a site called "SheTexted," for the clueless with a Y Chromosome, within 6-10 weeks.